iWorld
FIFS names Bimal Julka as new chairman
MUMBAI: The Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) has appointed Bimal Julka as chairman. In his new role, Julka will work closely with all stakeholders to further strengthen the operating standards of the Indian fantasy sports industry.
Julka takes over from John Loffhagen, who served as chairman for over three years. Loffhagen will assume the role of a strategic advisor and support FIFS on collaborating with relevant international bodies in the industry.
With over four decades of service in the government at both state and national levels, Bimal Julka is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1979 batch belonging to the Madhya Pradesh cadre. He served as chief information commissioner at the Centre until September 2020. Prior to that, he held several senior posts in the Ministry of Defence, Civil Aviation, Information & Broadcasting, External Affairs, Finance, Commerce and Public Relations.
FIFS CEO Anwar Shirpurwala said, “Having such a senior dignitary like Julka representing fantasy sports will strengthen the industry’s credibility, and we are sure to witness new strides towards reformations and standardisation of the rapidly growing fantasy sports industry.”
Julka described the fantasy sports segment as a new and disruptive industry that has great potential to strengthen and promote sports in the country through meaningful fan engagement. “While fantasy sports are seeing unprecedented growth in both users and operators, there arises an equal need to protect the users and promote responsible growth,” he added.
Founded in 2017, FIFS is India’s first self-regulatory industry body for fantasy sports. At present, it has 35 members who cumulatively account for over 99 per cent of India’s fantasy sports market.
iWorld
T20 World Cup ’26: India–England semi-final sets global streaming record of 619 million views on JioHotstar
India–England semi-final records 65.2 million peak streams
MUMBAI: The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 set a new milestone in global sports streaming, as the India–England semi-final drew record digital audiences on JioHotstar.
The match on 5 March registered 65.2 million peak concurrent viewers, the highest ever recorded for a live event on any streaming platform worldwide. The semi-final also generated 619 million views, making it the most streamed T20 international match in history.
The landmark audience numbers were driven largely by viewers in India, setting a record achieved within a single market, rather than through aggregated viewership across multiple countries.
The high-scoring encounter between India national cricket team and England cricket team produced 499 runs across both innings, fuelling widespread fan engagement across platforms.
According to the International Cricket Council, the digital record surpassed the previous global benchmark of 65 million concurrent viewers, set in November 2024 by another international streaming platform.
Across television and digital platforms combined, the semi-final reached more than 320 million viewers, while total watch time exceeded 23 billion minutes, making it the most watched T20 international match ever.
“This World Cup demonstrates the immense passion of cricket fans and the progress made in bringing the game closer to audiences worldwide,” said ICC chairman Jay Shah.
“This moment reflects the scale of cricket fandom in India and the technological capability required to serve hundreds of millions of viewers simultaneously.”
JioStar vice-chairman Uday Shankar, said the audience surge underscored the future of large-scale digital entertainment.
“One in every three Indians tuned in to watch the second semi-final. Delivering such an experience at scale requires the very best of technology,” he said.
The 619 million views during the match also eclipsed the 533 million views recorded during the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.
With the final yet to be played, the 2026 tournament has already set multiple benchmarks in audience reach and digital engagement.
India will face the New Zealand national cricket team in the final on 8 March at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The match will be broadcast on the Star Sports Network and streamed on JioHotstar.
